Lovers of Yesterday

Chpater 35 • Discharged

"Miss Cain, we had gotten a search warrant for Mr. Davis and found proof of domestic violence. He's been charged with domestic violence in the first degree based on the injuries you have." The officer passed Liam's phone to me. "We felt is was within your right to know that it looks like he's been talking to other women."

I took the phone and just stared at the names on his list of contacts. All of them were women and I recognized some of their profile pictures as women he played off as family or friends. I didn't click on any of the messages. I didn't want to see what they talked about. That was their private conversations.

I handed it back to the officer while clenching my jaw. Of course I knew. I lied to myself that he was being honest. I should've known when I saw him out with the other girl at the ice cream shop. I told myself to believe him. So stupid.

"Thank you. And thank you for all your help," I acknowledged, smiling a little.

He nodded his head. "It's our job, ma'am. Don't hesitate to call if you need help."

He turned and left, the door clicking closed behind him. Lynch stood up and reclaimed his spot on the hospital bed next to me. He has yet to leave and go back to his apartment. He's kept me company the entire day they required for me to stay in the hospital.

I'm supposed to be leaving today but the nurse said I'll need to be checked out to make sure nothing else is wrong or has gone wrong. I swallowed and readjusted on the bed. When I couldn't find a comfortable spot, I sat up slowly, groaning when my head pounded. I felt Lynch's hand on my shoulder, steadying me as the headache faded.

"You ok, sweetheart?" His worried voice hit my ears.

I lifted my eyes to look at him. "Yeah. Laying down for too long made my head hurt. I just want to go h-" The word got stuck in my throat. I haven't used the word 'home' in over five years. "I want to go back to the apartment."

He frowned and inquired. "What were you gonna say?"

"Nothing. My voice just got caught," I denied the truth and smiled at him.

He offered a small one in return but it isn't his normal relaxed smile. I frowned and questioned him in return.

"What's wrong, Lynch? You've been acting funny since what happened at my place."

His attempt at a smile fell. He stared at me for a minute before he asked, "Have you ever looked like that before?"

Taken aback, I bit down on my lip. I wasn't sure how to answer that. He rephrased his question quickly. "I mean, have you ever looked that scared before? Have you ever looked that beaten down? Cause that's the first time I've ever seen you like that and I hated it."

I slowly shook my head. "No. He's threatened to hurt me before like when he's annoyed or if I did something he didn't like and he's raised his hand as if to hit me buts he's never actually hit me."

Another wave of worry crossed over his features. "Why didn't you leave him then? No guy you date should ever do that to you."

"I don't have a good reason. Maybe I was hoping he'd change." I shook my head at my own idiocy. "He wasn't like that before we started dating and the first couple years. We did regular couple stuff. Then, it was like something flipped and he started acting like that."

"I guessing by that point, he wasn't really happy. Maybe he wasn't all along but he finally showed it then," he suggested.

I opened my mouth to say something else but a knock on the door stopped me. A nurse walked in with a clipboard in hand and stopped next to the bed to check the machines.

"Well, it looks like you've been stuck here long enough. You ready to go home?" She asked.

"Yes, ma'am," I answered.

She smiled. "Alright, let's head up to the front so we can schedule a follow-up appointment and get you checked out."

I nodded and Lynch helped me stand up so we could follow her out. He stayed close as she slipped behind a computer stand and began clicking away at it. She asked a couple questions before rattling off the follow-up appointment date and saying I was cleared to leave.

"Come on, sweetheart. Let's get you outta here." Lynch winced before adding, "That chemically smell is starting to get to me."

I laughed and walked with him toward the elevator. He pressed one of the many buttons and we stood in silence as the numbers descended. When the doors opened we walked through the waiting room out to the parking lot.

He led me over to his truck and helped me climb into the passenger side. He clicked the seat belt into place and rounded the front to climb in the driver's side. He started it up and turned on the music while backing out of the spot. As he maneuvered through the tight parking lot, I remembered that he rode in the ambulance with me.

"Lynch?" He made a humming noise in response. "Who brought your trick for you? I know you didn't drive over here in it."

"Oh, I asked Ember to bring it over for me," he answered, turning onto the main road.

"Ok." I fell silent and picked at the skin around my fingers.

It was silent between us for a while until we got close to the apartment complex. He moved his arm to the center console and his hand grabbed my wrist, stopping me from picking at my skin.

"What're you gonna do about your apartment?"

I looked over at him. "What do you mean?"

"Will you feel comfortable living there still? After...that, I wasn't sure if you'd want to move or stay."

I shrugged. "Um, I'm gonna stop by and pick up a few things. I guess I'll decide then."

"Alright. We can stop by once I park. Sound good?" He suggested, glancing over at me.

"You don't have to come with me. I can handle it."

"I know you can, sweetheart, but I'm not sure I'm ready to let you walk back in there alone," he admitted, now refusing to look at me. "I'm bein' honest; I was scared shitless when I got back to my place and you weren't there."

I chewed on my lip. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you like that. I just- I don't know. I got this burst of confidence and I thought I could handle him on my own. I know I should've probably waited but I just wanted to be done with him."

"I get that and I'm proud that you wanted to stand up for yourself. Hell, I don't know why I'm so up in arms about it. Maybe 'cause I saw how he treated you and I knew what my mom went through. Every scenario that played through my head ended with me bein' too late."

He had parked by now but we were still sitting in his truck which was still running. He still had a loose hold on my wrist. I stared at his hand and the little bruises on his knuckles. They were from when he punched Liam.

I pulled my arm from his and he let me go. Reaching over the console, I wrapped my arm over his shoulder and pulled him into a hug, leaving room for my injured arm. I rested my head on his shoulder as his arms came to loop around my back.

"Thank you. Thank you for saving me and finally making me listen," I whispered.

He didn't say anything but his arms constricted just slightly and pulled me closer.